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new cafe laws explained.

today, the new cafe laws were unveiled and by 2016, brands must average 37.8mpg for cars and 28.8 in light trucks...

Ive discovered that very few people actually know how the cafe laws work, so i put together a run down explaining how the numbers are calculated and what the punishments are for brands that dont meet the requirements..

im glad that it has proved to be so informative. Ive noticed lately that I read so much about CAFE laws and i see people on forums worrying about performance cars being forced out by the new laws but rarely is it mentioned how long theyve been in action or the fact that none of the big 3 have ever been assessed a fine under CAFE. It seems to me that when you break it down like i did, the laws are no where near as imposing as some people believe...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Werecow

It seems to me, even with that math formula, the Mustang would be somehwat affected as there are huge numbers of them built. Or is my math fuzzy?

Essentially every car that isnt a hybrid hurts your average but look at the mpg ratings for the 2011 Mustang. 31 for the v6 and 26 for the v8. the mustang is probably Ford's least efficient car for the 2011 model year and the requirements for 2012 is 33.3 so the V6 is pretty close to the required average. when you consider the fact that the LEAST efficient car in the lineup is that close to the average and cars like the fusion are selling like crazy, the mustang does have a negative impact on the brands overall mpg but theyve done enough work that even the performance cars are almost at the required average...over a year in advance.

Also, consider the sales from last month...
the fusion sold 22,773 units and the focus sold 19,500 units. i do not know those vehicles mpg rating off the top of my head, but im pretty certain that they are both above the 2012 requirement of 33.3.

the mustang, which offers 26 and 31 for the two engines (in 2011) sold 5,829 units last month, so even though the mustang is one of the models that brings the brand average down, their sales numbers are low enough compared to the more fuel efficient models that it doesn't hurt the company.

mind you, this is a very black and white explanation...there are lots of variables that i dont take into consideration...like v6-take rate and such, but this gives you an idea of why the muscle car is safe, especially with how technology is allowing the cars to make more power more efficiently.

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